Suing the Devil

Suing the Devil
Theatrical release poster
Directed byTim Chey
Written byTim Chey
Produced byDavid Turrell
StarringMalcolm McDowell
Tom Sizemore
CinematographyTom Gleeson
Edited byTim Chey
Music byDavid Turrell
Distributed byMouthwatering Productions
Release date
  • 26 August 2011 (2011-08-26)
Running time
106 minutes
CountriesAustralia
United States
LanguageEnglish

Suing the Devil is a 2010 Christian thriller film which was released in 2011. It was written and directed by Tim Chey and stars Malcolm McDowell and Tom Sizemore.[1][2]

Plot

Luke O'Brien (Bart Bronson), a washed-up salesman turned night law student, decides to sue Satan for 8 trillion dollars. On the last day before Luke files a default judgment, Satan (Malcolm McDowell) appears to defend himself. On Satan's legal team are ten of the world's best trial lawyers. The entire world watches on Justice TV to see who will win the Trial of the Century. In the end, Luke wins the suit after a sensational proceeding. However, the film ends by showing that everything was a dream.

Cast

Production

Filming took place in Burbank, Los Angeles, Darlinghurst in New South Wales, and Sydney.

Release

Suing the Devil was released internationally in Brazil, UK, Canada, Australia, and Nigeria.[citation needed] The film was distributed on demand through a variety of services in the US and Canada.[3]

Accolades

The film won the 5-Dove Award from the Dove Foundation, their highest rating for a "family approved" film.[4]

Critical reception

Some critical reviews were negative. For example, Gabe Toro of Indiewire wrote: "The ideas behind the film are laughably primitive, and it's startling to see an actor of McDowell's caliber swept up in them. At the point where Satan begins taking credit for gangsta rap, it's clear that the ignorance that powers this film is borderline dangerous... In short, it's embarrassing on almost every level, poorly written, shot, scored and edited and bereft of a single idea, interesting or otherwise." Toro gave it a letter grade of F.[5]

In a review for The A.V. Club by Nathan Rabin wrote that "[t]hanks almost entirely to McDowell, Suing The Devil is one of the most entertaining evangelical Christian films I've written about for this column. Unlike most godly epics, it has a sense of humor about itself, but the laughs it generates are largely of the unintentional variety. It's sweet, dopey, and strangely touching in its fuzzy but strong-headed conviction that with a whole lot of faith and Jesus' love inside him, a no-hoper of a lawyer could triumph over the ultimate evil."[6]

References

  1. ^ Soergel, Matt (22 May 2011). "'Suing the Devil' is latest Christian-themed film by former Orange Park atheist". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  2. ^ Weber, Katerine (25 January 2012). "'Suing the Devil' Filmmaker Alleges Online Atheist 'Mob Attack'". The Christian Post. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  3. ^ "'Suing the Devil' to Be Released into 100 Million Homes on Good Friday". Christian Newswire. 3 April 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2017.
  4. ^ "Suing the Devil". The Dove Foundation. Retrieved 7 April 2017.
  5. ^ Toro, Gabe (12 April 2012). "Review: 'Suing The Devil' A Genuine Career Low For Malcolm McDowell". Indiewire. Retrieved 7 April 2017.
  6. ^ Rabin, Nathan (9 April 2013). "Malcolm McDowell's smirking Satan makes Suing The Devil ridiculous fun". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 7 April 2017.